CME Group Inc., the operator of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and related U.S. futures markets, plans to add Bitcoin Cash and Uniswap futures to its regulated cryptocurrency list later in October. The contracts would let traders hedge or take price exposure without holding the tokens. The listing still depends on regulatory review.
What CME Group announced
In a September 22, 2026 statement, CME Group said the products are scheduled to start on October 19. The same date appears in the exchange’s cryptocurrency futures frequently asked questions (FAQ). Both notices say the launch remains pending regulatory review.
A futures contract is a standardized agreement that tracks an asset’s price to a set expiry date. CME Group said the Bitcoin Cash and Uniswap contracts would be cash settled. Cash settlement means profits and losses are paid in dollars against a reference price. Traders would not receive Bitcoin Cash (BCH) or Uniswap (UNI) coins at expiry. Settlement would use CME CF reference rates, the same benchmark family already used for the firm’s other cryptocurrency futures.
Contract sizes and how the products are built
The planned sizes are 250 BCH for the standard Bitcoin Cash future and 25 BCH for the Micro Bitcoin Cash future. The Uniswap future would cover 10,000 UNI, with a Micro Uniswap future covering 1,000 UNI. CME Group’s Basis Trade at Index Close (BTIC) page also lists both products for October 19, pending review. BTIC lets two parties agree to a futures trade as a spread to a published reference rate.
Bitcoin Cash is a 2017 fork of Bitcoin that kept a larger block size and a payments-focused design. Uniswap is a decentralized exchange (DEX), a venue where users trade tokens through automated liquidity pools rather than a central order book. UNI is the governance token of that protocol. The listing would put a decentralized finance (DeFi) token on the same regulated futures roster as coins such as Solana (SOL) and XRP.
Where the listing fits in CME Group’s crypto book
CME Group already lists single-asset futures on Bitcoin, Ether, XRP, Solana, Cardano (ADA), Chainlink (LINK), Stellar Lumens (XLM), Avalanche (AVAX) and Sui (SUI), according to the same announcement. Bitcoin Cash is not new to that complex. It was included in the Nasdaq CME Crypto Index when those index futures began trading in June. Uniswap would be a new single-asset listing.
The exchange has spent 2026 widening that menu. It listed Cardano, Chainlink and Stellar futures in February, then prepared Avalanche and Sui futures ahead of near-continuous hours. Cryptocurrency futures and options on the venue moved to a 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (24/7) schedule on May 29. The first weekend of that schedule saw about $50 million in notional trading.
Volume, open interest and the CME share price
CME Group said first-half 2026 cryptocurrency futures and options averaged 279,800 contracts a day, or $8.3 billion in notional value. Average open interest (OI), the number of contracts still outstanding, was 264,600 contracts, or $15.4 billion. The 2026 expansion into Cardano, Chainlink, Stellar, Avalanche and Sui futures has contributed more than $1 billion in notional value year to date. Bitcoin and Ether still account for most of that activity.
CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CME) last closed at $275.53 on September 21, down $0.48, or 0.17%, according to Yahoo Finance. The previous close was $276.01. The 52-week range is $218.31 to $329.16. Market capitalization was about $99.1 billion. The trailing price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio was 23.37.
The indicated dividend yield was 1.89%. The next earnings date on the quote page is October 21, 2026. Interest rates, equity indexes, and commodity contracts remain the core of the business. Cryptocurrency futures are a growth line, not the franchise.
Why these two tokens, and who would use them
Giovanni Vicioso, Global Head of Cryptocurrency Products at CME Group, said clients want broader regulated tools as crypto markets mature. Justin Young, chief executive officer (CEO) of Volatility Shares, and Noel Kimmel, president at Ripple Prime, were also quoted in the release. Those comments describe demand from firms that already clear Bitcoin and Ether on CME Group and want the same margin and settlement stack for two more tokens.
Bitcoin Cash has a second market-structure track. Grayscale Investments Sponsors, LLC filed an amended Form S-3 on September 11, 2026, seeking to convert Grayscale Bitcoin Cash Trust (BCH) into a fund listed on NYSE Arca. Form S-3 is a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) registration form. The amendment is not an approval to list or trade. The Crypto Times earlier covered Grayscale’s Bitcoin Cash exchange-traded fund (ETF) paperwork.
Uniswap’s token has had a separate catalyst. UNI rose after the SEC opened a limited path for tokenized U.S. stocks to trade through permissioned automated market maker (AMM) pools, a move the Crypto Times reported on September 18. An AMM pool prices trades with a formula and deposited liquidity rather than a traditional bid-ask book. A futures listing would give funds a regulated hedge against UNI. It would not change how the Uniswap protocol works.
The first users are likely to be market makers, prime brokers, and funds that want price exposure without spot custody. A holder of BCH or UNI can sell the future to hedge inventory. Retail traders who use high-leverage offshore perpetual swaps, contracts with no expiry date, are less likely to move. CME Group is separately contesting the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) over Bitcoin perpetual futures.
What the listing does not prove
A listing is not the same as a liquid market. Solana and XRP futures later drew meaningful open interest. Cardano, Chainlink and Stellar were quieter. Bitcoin Cash had a stronger 2025 large-cap run and has since cooled.
If the October 19 launch clears review, the first useful test will be opening-week volume, open interest, and whether the futures price stays close to the spot market. Until then, the announcement is a product-calendar item, not evidence of demand.
Also Read: Circle Launches Bitcoin-Backed cirBTC on Arc for DeFi Use
